Ahmedabad

Patidar Anamat Andolam Samiti(PAAS) leader Hardik Patel was sent to 7 days police custody by Ahmedabad Metro court Judge SJ Brahmbhatt early in the morning at around 4.00 am today.

Hardik has been arrested by Ahmedabad police crime branch in sedition case filed here.

According to Hardik’s lawyer BM Mangukiya who is also Gujarat Congress’s legal cell head, the Crime Branch had sought 14 days remand against which the Judge approved 7 days remand till 1st November.

Hardik was first arrested on 18 October in Rajkot for insult of national tricolor. He was released on bail next day, but imidiately arrested by Surat police crime branch for sedition case filed in Surat. Next day he was produced in court there and sent on 3 days remand, after which he was sent to judicial custody(jail) for 14 days, but Ahmedabad police crime branch team reached Surat and arrested him through transfer warrant in another sedition case filed in Ahmedabad. He was taken to hospital for medical checkup yesterday and later produced at Judge’s resident. Hardik’s lawyer Mangukiya in his argument sought papers of police permission for recording Hardik’s phone calls. The crime branch team had to rush to Gandhinagar in midnight to produce the papers which took long time. While Hardik was produced at judge’s residence post 10.00 pm, the order on his police custody(remand) could come out only at around 4.00 am.

Thus from 18 October to 1st November, Hardik will complete total 14 days in police custody.

Hardik’s three aides Ketan, Dinesh and Chirag Patel are also arrested and are on 7 days remand in sedition case filed in Ahmedabad. Yesterday, police took Ketan, Dinesh and Chitag to Gandhinagar based Forensic Science Laboratory(FSL) for their voice spectrography tests. Hardik’s such test has been already conducted in Gandhinagar FSL in connection with a sedition case filed in Surat.

During police custody, police is trying to understand the entire nature of PASS agitation which started for Other Backward Class(OBC) reservation for Patel community, but speedily emerged as anti-BJP agitation with open support by Congress party leaders. Who are the actual persons behind this agitation, who funded over 100 rallies and other programmes as part of this agitation are still some questions unresolved.

– DeshGujarat

Detail report:

After night long hearing at Magistrate’s residence, CB gets 7 days remand of Hardik

Ahmedabad, Oct 25

After a night long hearing at his official residence in Shahibaug area of the city, metropolitan magistrate S J Brahambhatt today allowed seven days remand (till November 1) of Patidar reservation stir leader Hardik Patel to the crime branch in connection with a sensational sedition case filed by it here.

The crime branch investigating officer J S Gedam produced Hardik before the magistrate late last night and demanded 14 days remand for further interrogation on over a dozen counts including the inquiry regarding the registration of the Patidar Anamat Aandolan Samiti (PAAS), the outfit spearheading the patel reservation stir and of which Hardik is a self styled convener. The crime branch also said that it wanted to know details regarding the financial support for various activities of the outfit including its 127 rallies all over the state since July this year.

It also said that PAAS is not a registered organisation and has no constitution. It wanted to collect various details regarding its members, office bearers and other activities. The crime branch said that it needed to know about the conspiracy angle of the August 25 and 26 violence in the state, which erupted after the detention of Hardik and PAAS leaders, including the attack on ministers, MLAs and MPs residences, policemen and police stations/government offices and burning of vehicles including the one of an additional sessions judge and damaging of government properties. It also wanted to understand various aspects of the telephone intercepts of the outfit leaders and recognize the voices of unidentified people. Hardik’s remand was also necessary to nab the remaining two accused of the sedition case who were still on the run.

Hardik’s advocate and senior Congress leader B M Mangukiya on the other hand opposed the remand saying the call intercept was illegal and the whole matter a result of political animosity.

The court however pronounced its order in the wee hours today allowing seven days remand of Hardik for further interrogation.

During the late night hearing the crime branch sleuths had to rush to capital Gandhinagar to bring some documents as proof of permission to intercept the calls of Patel leaders.

Later, talking to newsmen Mr. Mangukiya said that he would file a petition before the High Court tomorrow against the illegal interception of the phone calls of the PAAS leaders. ‘The call intercept on August 25 and 26 was totally illegal and a violation to the section 17 of the I T Act which stipulates a prior permission from the competent authority. The police got it on a later date,’ he said.

The Crime Branch team had brought Hardik from Surat, where he was in police remand for four days in another case of sedition which has been lodged against him in Amroli police station for his alleged instigating suggestion to his supporter Vipul Desai on October 3 regarding killing of policemen rather than committing suicide.

The Crime Branch here has lodged case no. 90/2015 under charges of sedition and conspiracy to overthrow the government filed by its ACP K P Patel based on the sensational call intercepts of the PAAS leaders. Hardik and five of his aides have been made accused in the case Three other accused Chirag Patel, Dinesh Patel and Ketan Patel are already in Crime Branch remand till October 29. Two other accused Alpesh Kathiriya and Amrish Patel are still at large.

Voice tests of Chirag, Dinesh and Ketan were conducted in the Forensic Science Lab in Gandhinagar yesterday. Hardik is also expected to follow suit soon.

– DeshGujarat